Dexter Inferno
Serious error
Say you've recorded your band or something like that, all is sounding good.
Then you need some synths/organs or whatever on top of that.
Come time to mix you find you can't get the midi/synth tracks to sit right with the rest of the band - this is something I've run across on a few occasions. Too in your face, or sounding "too good" compared to the rest.
What I find works well, especially with B3-ish organs as one example, is eq really helps.
First, get it into an audio format (bounce to wave), then add a healthy mid range bump with a wide Q and use highpass/lowpass filters to get rid of unnecessary low and high frequencies (and there's a lot of it in most synths!). Unless you're doing orchestral type sounds you don't need much in the low and high end.
Tweak until it sounds great IN THE MIX - this is key. Don't solo it, keep the whole mix open while you eq.
Still doesn't sit quite right yet? Distortion! Yep, I'm not kidding. Not much needed, just a little hair on it.
One other trick you can use is guitar amp simulation (Guitar Rig is great for this, and it has a lot of cool effects built in as well).
Recently, I did a mix that had a Rhodes type sound in it (done on a Nord Stage keyboard).
What I eventually did to get it to sit right was eq it, then fire up Guitar Rig 5, run it through a Fender 2x12 simulation with a bit of drive added and some tremolo. Then threw on a healthy dose of a fairly long room reverb and shitloads of compression. Sorted.
Keep in mind, every mix is different, but sometimes the trick really is to make those plugin sounds sound a lot less hi-fi and occasionally even a bit ugly. If you got a multi in/out interface you can route it back out to a guitar amp and then mic it up and record that signal (remember to shift the recorded track a bit forward so it lines up).
Hopefully some helpful pointers in here. Use your imagination.
Don't be lazy and just leave it as is. Take your time and get it right.
Then you need some synths/organs or whatever on top of that.
Come time to mix you find you can't get the midi/synth tracks to sit right with the rest of the band - this is something I've run across on a few occasions. Too in your face, or sounding "too good" compared to the rest.
What I find works well, especially with B3-ish organs as one example, is eq really helps.
First, get it into an audio format (bounce to wave), then add a healthy mid range bump with a wide Q and use highpass/lowpass filters to get rid of unnecessary low and high frequencies (and there's a lot of it in most synths!). Unless you're doing orchestral type sounds you don't need much in the low and high end.
Tweak until it sounds great IN THE MIX - this is key. Don't solo it, keep the whole mix open while you eq.
Still doesn't sit quite right yet? Distortion! Yep, I'm not kidding. Not much needed, just a little hair on it.
One other trick you can use is guitar amp simulation (Guitar Rig is great for this, and it has a lot of cool effects built in as well).
Recently, I did a mix that had a Rhodes type sound in it (done on a Nord Stage keyboard).
What I eventually did to get it to sit right was eq it, then fire up Guitar Rig 5, run it through a Fender 2x12 simulation with a bit of drive added and some tremolo. Then threw on a healthy dose of a fairly long room reverb and shitloads of compression. Sorted.
Keep in mind, every mix is different, but sometimes the trick really is to make those plugin sounds sound a lot less hi-fi and occasionally even a bit ugly. If you got a multi in/out interface you can route it back out to a guitar amp and then mic it up and record that signal (remember to shift the recorded track a bit forward so it lines up).
Hopefully some helpful pointers in here. Use your imagination.
Don't be lazy and just leave it as is. Take your time and get it right.
I was gonna say to throw some reverb on it, but the distortion makes sense, especially just as a lo-fi-ification machine. Squash it a little, hair it up a little, and send it further back in the room. 
